According to the latest statistics, 1.4 million cases of identity theft were reported in 2020. These types of theft are continuously on the rise and can be very frustrating for people all over the globe. Therefore, it is very important to pay close attention to every form of ID that you carry around daily, especially your driver’s license.
Though a driver’s license is relatively easy to replace in many states across the United States, this single card can easily cause a lot of unnecessary havoc to everyone’s day-to-day lives.
While most people may not have any experience in losing their driver’s license it is still a tumultuous experience for anyone who is negatively impacted by this kind of theft.
So, if you are looking to minimize the kind of havoc that tends to affect people who have had their driver’s license stolen, here is what you need to do if this happens to you.
Table Of Content
- What To Do If My Driving License Is Lost Or Stolen
- What Can A Thieves Do When They Steal Your Driver’s License
- FAQs
What To Do If My Driving License Is Lost Or Stolen?
1. Report The Theft To The Police
Losing your driver’s license inside of your home is vastly different from someone stealing your wallet that holds your driver’s license.
Typically, if your driver’s license has been lost inside of your home, you may want to wait until you can find it. As long as you know that your driver’s license is somewhere inside of your home, you may not worry about reporting it to the police.
On the other hand, if you lose your driver’s license somewhere outside your home, you may want to go to the DMV right away to replace it.
On the flip side, if you know that your driver’s license was actually stolen, you need to make sure that you report it to the police as soon as possible.
You need to report your driver’s license as stolen to the police for various reasons. One of the most important reasons involves clearing your name if any incident of fraud or crime is committed while it is in the criminal’s possession.
So, don’t wait. You need to report this crime to the police right away
2. Place A Freeze On Your Credit Reports
Your driver’s license contains a lot of valuable information about you. So, if an individual who steals your license is a professional identity thief, they can damage you in a plenty of ways. In fact, they can even decide to open a financial account in your name.
Because a bad debt financial account can destroy your credit, it is important that you freeze your credit account to protect your credit score and credit history.
3. Notify Your State DMV
Every state has its own procedures. However, it is more than likely that the same or similar procedures for drivers are in effect. For instance, most states will flag your driver’s number so that the police will have a formal record of the theft.
You can easily notify the state DMV by filling out the 44eDL 44 form online and paying the required fee.
4. Don’t Drive Until You Get A Replacement License
Even though this may go without saying, do not get behind the wheel to drive until you have replaced the old license with the new license. Therefore, as soon as you discover the theft and any other details of what has happened, you need to go and get your new license. By reacting early, you can avoid the risks and the possibility of being fined for additional violations.
5. Sign Up For Theft Protection
After your license has been stolen, you need to do everything that you can to disarm the thieves. So, do not wait or delay other actions as well.
To get started with this, you need to sign up for a good identity theft protection plan. By signing up early, you can prevent personal information from leaking out and the possibility of being penalized for activities that you did not do.
What Can A Thief Do When They Steal Your Driver’s License
If this is the first time that you have dealt with any type of identity theft problem, you may not know about all of the unlawful things that can be done with your identity. Therefore, it is very important that you equip yourself with useful and essential information.
Here are a few things that can be done to interrupt your life.
- Illegal purchase of alcohol and tobacco products can be done in your name. Young people can use this tactic to purchase intoxications, especially when they are too young to drink or smoke.
- Apply for a job using your name and license.
- Avoid paying for traffic violations.
- Rent useful things
FAQs
If you want to know when or how your driver’s license has been used, there are some things that you can check. In fact, there are several government agencies that may have the information that you looking for. So, to get started, go to www.identitytheft.gov/ or call 1-877-438-4338 to find the information that you need. For instance, if you want to see if someone tried to use your driver’s license to secure information about your social security check, you should visit www.socialsecurity.gov/statement/.
You should file a theft report with the FTC for a number of reasons. In fact, even though the FTC does not have jurisdiction over criminal investigations, they do support these types of investigations with the data that they collect. Actually, one of their primary roles is to be a clearinghouse for identity theft reports and other pertinent information.
If your driver’s license is lost or stolen, you need to complain about it to the DMV office by filling out the 44eDL 44 form.
An identity thief can harm you several ways if they get access to your driver’s license. They can apply for a job, avoid paying for traffic violations, use it in bars and clubs, and rent the things they need.
